Metro Washington Council AFL-CIO
  • Home
  • Take Action Now!
  • Calendar
  • Programs
    • Community Services >
      • Espanol
      • Mission
      • Donate Now
      • Programs
      • Funders
      • Archives
    • Political Action >
      • Meetings
      • DC Voting Info 2020
      • MD Voting Info
      • Legislative Updates
      • Archive
      • Mission
      • Elected Officials
      • Endorsements
      • Candidate Questionnaires: Archive 2006-2014 >
        • 2018
        • 2016
        • 2015
        • 2014
        • Other
        • 2012
        • 2010
        • 2008
        • 2007
        • 2006
    • Unemployment Help
    • Hiring Hall >
      • ADMINISTRATIVE
      • COMMUNICATIONS
      • INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
      • INTERNSHIPS
      • LEGAL
      • MISC
      • ORGANIZING
      • POLITICAL
      • RESEARCH
  • Union City Radio
  • About Us
    • Leaders & Staff
  • Union City News
  • Affiliates
  • DC LaborFest
    • Archive >
      • 2022 Events
      • 2021 Films
      • 2021 Other
      • 2020 Films
      • 2019
      • Films (AFI) 2019
      • Films (other) 2019
      • Music 2019
      • History (2019)
      • Art (2019)
      • Other: Fashion show, Soccer, Solidarity Awards, Trivia (2019)
      • Radio/Podcasts
      • 2018
      • Other events
      • Films (AFI) 2018
      • Films (other) 2018
      • Music (2018)
      • History (2018)
      • Art (2018)
      • Other: Marx, whiskey, pub trivia & radio (2018)
      • 2017 >
        • Films (AFI)
        • Films (other)
        • Music
        • History
        • Art
        • Other: Soccer, Whiskey, Theater
      • 2016 >
        • Films (AFI)
        • Films (other)
        • Music
        • History & Art
        • Soccer, Poetry
      • 2015
      • 2014
  • Affiliate Social Media
  • Allies Social Media
  • Constituency Group Social Media
  • Union Shop
  • Evening With Labor
    • Archive
    • 2019 Evening With Labor
    • 2018 Evening With Labor
    • 2017 Evening With Labor
    • 2016 Evening With Labor
    • 2015 Evening With Labor
  • Home
  • Take Action Now!
  • Calendar
  • Programs
    • Community Services >
      • Espanol
      • Mission
      • Donate Now
      • Programs
      • Funders
      • Archives
    • Political Action >
      • Meetings
      • DC Voting Info 2020
      • MD Voting Info
      • Legislative Updates
      • Archive
      • Mission
      • Elected Officials
      • Endorsements
      • Candidate Questionnaires: Archive 2006-2014 >
        • 2018
        • 2016
        • 2015
        • 2014
        • Other
        • 2012
        • 2010
        • 2008
        • 2007
        • 2006
    • Unemployment Help
    • Hiring Hall >
      • ADMINISTRATIVE
      • COMMUNICATIONS
      • INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
      • INTERNSHIPS
      • LEGAL
      • MISC
      • ORGANIZING
      • POLITICAL
      • RESEARCH
  • Union City Radio
  • About Us
    • Leaders & Staff
  • Union City News
  • Affiliates
  • DC LaborFest
    • Archive >
      • 2022 Events
      • 2021 Films
      • 2021 Other
      • 2020 Films
      • 2019
      • Films (AFI) 2019
      • Films (other) 2019
      • Music 2019
      • History (2019)
      • Art (2019)
      • Other: Fashion show, Soccer, Solidarity Awards, Trivia (2019)
      • Radio/Podcasts
      • 2018
      • Other events
      • Films (AFI) 2018
      • Films (other) 2018
      • Music (2018)
      • History (2018)
      • Art (2018)
      • Other: Marx, whiskey, pub trivia & radio (2018)
      • 2017 >
        • Films (AFI)
        • Films (other)
        • Music
        • History
        • Art
        • Other: Soccer, Whiskey, Theater
      • 2016 >
        • Films (AFI)
        • Films (other)
        • Music
        • History & Art
        • Soccer, Poetry
      • 2015
      • 2014
  • Affiliate Social Media
  • Allies Social Media
  • Constituency Group Social Media
  • Union Shop
  • Evening With Labor
    • Archive
    • 2019 Evening With Labor
    • 2018 Evening With Labor
    • 2017 Evening With Labor
    • 2016 Evening With Labor
    • 2015 Evening With Labor

Today’s Labor Quote: Chris Llewelyn

3/25/2019

 
Picture
From her poem, “White Light (After Sonya Levien),” from “Fragments from the Fire: the Triangle Shirtwaist Company Fire of March 25, 1911,” which won the Walt Whitman Award in 1986.

It's not easy to teach us union.
Garment girls shift like sand, start
too young in the trade, wait for

Prince Charming to take em away.
When I arrived from Russia
my cheeks like apples.  And look now!

But talk about a dreaming fool!
Me, thirteen in the Golden Land
longing to work at Life and Love.

Be what you call a builder of bridges.
I'd go back, show all Moscow
a great American lady.

My first position: feeding kerchiefs
to machine.  First English sentence:
"Watch your needle -- 3,000 stitches

A minute."  I was some swift kid in
those days:  seventy-two-hundred
an hour, eighty-six-thousand pieces

A day, four dollars in the pay
envelope -- and that the busy season.
For three months my pay was bread.

I yearned to earn wages, save my
little sister's passage, I was so
lonely in America.  Soon like the rest

I grieved at my machine, swore I'd
marry any old man just to get out.
One by one the others left to marry

And returned to Triangle.  I saw
my future in a white heat light
no dreams could soften.

Thanks to the folks at Friday’s Folklore for sharing this poem; click here to subscribe.


Comments are closed.

    DC LABORFEST 2022

    Tweets by @DCLabor

    COVID RESOURCES

    COMMUNITY SERVICES

    EN ESPANOL

    UNEMPLOYMENT HELP

    LEGISLATIVE UPDATES


    ​Leaders & Staff

    AFFILIATES

    AFFILIATE Social Media

    HIRING HALL

    Evening with Labor

    Union City News

    UNION SHOP

    DC LABOR MAP

    Documents

    Constitution

    2022 MWC Election

    Archives

    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014

Share any story to Facebook, Twitter or via email!
Just click on the story
​and then click on the appropriate social media icon at right!
COPYRIGHT METRO WASHINGTON LABOR COUNCIL AFL-CIO 2022
202-974-8150; [email protected]